The Price Of Cheese
by rhinosgirl
Summary: After Danny collapses, the Reagan family tries to carry on as normal. But how long will they be able to hold on? Arguments, enemies, and unexpected opportunities shape them in ways they could never have imagined. They're left battered, bruised, and holding on to the only thing they have left. Hope.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N:** Now I know where it's going, and it looks (I hope) less like a "How To Deal With The Disabled" handbook and more like an actual story, I finally feel comfortable enough to repost. I hope it's worth the wait.

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Why is everything moving? Why are there spiders? Why is everything moving? Am I on an RV? Or is it a boat? Or a truck? What is it? Have I been? I have! I have been kidnapped. Somebody help my sons, they need me to cook for them. Everything is rocking like the rolling stones, tones. They carry no moss. Moss is bad. I hope this truck doesn't have any. I don't want to get sick. But I will get sick if they don't stop this moving. I wonder where I am? I have in my wallet. Where is my wallet, did I leave it at the precinct? No, I was at church. Why can't I move? There are spiders on the wall. I need to squash them before Erin gets here. Thank goodness Erin isn't here, she doesn't like spiders. She does like Morocco. Though I never could figure out why. Morocco is too far away. I'd miss my family if I went there. I don't want to go to Morocco, please don't make me go to Morocco!  
"Daniel! Daniel Reagan! Stop! You need to stop trying to move. You don't want to pull out the ventilator. We don't want to have to sedate you on top of all the other medications we've had to pump into you."  
Sedate. They've sedated me. But that's wrong. I didn't give them permission to do that! Where's Erin? Erin? I need to sue. They're kidnapping me. Erin! Erin! I can't get away from the zebras and bisons. They're going to trample me. I'm going to be fatter then a pancake. I'm already fatter than a pancake. I mean flatter. Get away from me, we're not in a zoo. This isn't a zoo. I know it isn't because a zoo zoos Isuzu not it's not an Isuzu they make a different sound. Zoos always have sea lions. Where are the sea lions?  
"He's asking for someone named Erin. Somebody ask his family and get them in here. No of course not all of them; just one or two - whichever ones are most likely to get him to settle down. Get this Erin person if you can. I don't know what to do if you can't find them! Probably his wife or father would be the best, but I don't really care. Any of them will do. I just have to get him to settle down, these alarms are going crazy!"  
I'm not crazy you stupid old biddy. You're the one who's crazy if you think you're going to get away with this! Ooh look! There are the wigs that we need to wear with our Halloween costumes. Linda will be so thrilled. We've been looking for them for ages. There is a pink one that dad can wear, and a green that Jamie can wear. It's nice and curly like an afro. That'll look good with his tree costume. Oh, look! It's waving around in the wind! So cute! It's already practicing for the part. At least if I fart in here, when they finally open the door. Wow, the door is really heavy. It looks like something out of a medieval castle. Maybe that's why I can't move. I'm in a suit of armor. Let me out! Let me out! Ow! That's cold and wet. I am going to drown. I hope not. Toucan bills don't look good on humans, but then neither do goat heads or horses asses. Though lots of humans are asses.  
"We need a family member in here within the next two minutes or I am going to have to sedate him. His blood pressure is going through the roof and his ICP is nearing dangerous levels. This is getting critical, somebody get them in here now!"  
ICP? I don't have an ICP? I have an echidna. They're the best computers, with their inbuilt defense system. I just wish the precinct would get some of them. It would stop it breaking down so much, maybe apples would help too. The cracks on the wall - they're getting bigger, they're pulling me in! I don't want to go. I don't want to end up in Morocco! I don't want to leave my family!  
"Who let those children in here? They're not over fifteen, so they're not allowed in here. I don't care whose kids they are. Get them out of here, now!"  
You leave my sons alone, if they want to see me they're allowed to! They can save me. They're allowed to. They're good at saving, they've got really big bank accounts. Lots of money, just ask them. They'll pay whatever you want, then we can leave. Just like the trees in spring and summer. Get it? Get it? Leave, leaves? Jamie's going to get it wrong. He's going to leave in November. No, Jamie please don't leave! What was that crash? Why is Sean crying? What have you done to my son? Why is there blood running down the wall? Where are my boys? Sean? Jack? Get back here! That's an order! Hamburgers and fries and a Doctor Pepper, please. Hi Mom. I'm so glad you're here. Nobody's listening to me. I told them to leave my sons alone. Can you tell them? They'll listen to you. Everyone listens to you, even Dad. It's good to see you. Is Joe here, too? I'll have to tell Jamie, Jamie really misses him, you know?  
"Danny? Danny? Can you hear me? It's Jamie, your brother. You collapsed, remember? You're safe now. You're in the emergency room. They're going to find out what's wrong. But you need to settle down. If you don't you'll have to be sedated. I know you don't like needles bro, and I'd hate for them to have to do that to you. That's it, don't fight the machines. Just breathe. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. I hear you were asking for Erin. That's one for the history books, Danny Reagan actually asking for his little sister. She's going to be here soon. In the meantime, Linda is coming. Nicky's gone to get her. Pop took her and the boys down to the cafeteria for something to eat. She'll be here real soon. We love you, Danny. We're all here, all our family is here. All we need is for you to join us again. Wake up and join us. Please."  
I'm right here, bro. I suppose you can't see me because of all the noise. Talking of, stop singing, Joe. You sound like a police siren in falsetto. You don't need to do that to show Jamie you're here, you hear? I'll tell him. Yes, I will. Ye- yes. Joseph, I will you need to shut up before I slug you and get in trouble. Mom is right there, you moron. Do you think I am that dumb? What's that, Mom? Okay, Mom. I'll be quiet. Quiet as a church mouse. Yes, and still, too. Stiller than a statues.  
Meanwhile, in the real world, Linda and her boys, along with the boys' cousin, Nicky, and great grandfather, Henry, had returned to the waiting room where Linda's father-in-law Frank was waiting for news on his son. Linda and Frank were just about to leave for Danny's bedside when a doctor arrived to talk to the family.  
"Mrs Reagan?"  
Linda stood up. "Yes?"  
"My name is Doctor Basul Ungeretti. If you will come with me I will inform you of your husband's condition. You can bring a support person with you if you wish."  
Linda looked around at her family. "No, thats fine," she said. "We can talk right here."  
Doctor Ungeretti looked at the two boys skeptically. "I really think it is better…"  
"I don't," Linda interrupted him. "What is my husband's status?"  
Doctor Ungeretti got a slightly frightened look in his eyes. "Mrs Reagan. With all due respect, there is a reason we don't allow children under fifteen years of age to visit patients in the ICU."  
"You are talking about my sons. My guess is that you don't have a policy or a rule that bans them from being here, in the waiting room, with our family?" Linda clarified.  
"No, we don't," he confirmed.  
Linda continued as if he'd never spoken. "So, since I'm not going to ask them to leave nor am I going to leave myself, I suggest you start talking. How is Danny?" Frank and Henry came forward to flank Linda as her voice rose.  
"How about we all sit down?" Frank suggested, leading Linda to a chair. He nodded to the doctor who took the not-so-subtle hint and dragged a chair to where he could sit and pretend he was just talking to Linda even though he was now surrounded by people.  
"As you have already been informed your husband has an infection that we are treating that with intravenous drugs. The infection that we identified is not particularly fast acting. But it is a dangerous one. For him to have been so far along that he collapsed from it, he must have contracted it sometime ago."  
"Some time ago? How long?" Everyone turned as Erin entered the waiting room, followed closely by Jamie. They both pulled up chairs and joined the circle. "How much time?" Erin repeated. "Are we talking days? Weeks? Months? Years?"  
The doctor shrugged and started reading the notes in his hands as he muttered, "I don't really know."  
"But you must have some idea," Erin argued. "If you know what antibiotics to give him you must have an idea what infection it is, and if you know what sort of infection it is you must have an idea of its incubation period."  
"It's not my are area of expertise." Doctor Ungeretti snapped shut the file he was holding. "I will send you someone who is better able to answer your questions in that area. But there is one more thing I have to tell you before I leave. Your husband"  
"Stop calling him my husband!" Linda yelled. After she had taken a few quiet deep breaths to calm down, she said more softly, "His name is Danny."  
"Your husband also suffered a retinal vein occlusion. We are also treating that with intravenous drug therapy. We won't know the extent of the damage until his fever comes down and he wakes up without any delirium."  
"He's asleep now," Jamie reported.  
"If he doesn't show some significant signs of improvement within the next forty eight hours or so and the eye injury deteriorates we might have to perform an orbital evisceration." The doctor carried on speaking as if Jamie hadn't even spoken, then stood up and left, seeming to take all of the air in the room with him.  
Jack looked around at his family. He could see that nobody was wanting to break the silence. This was bad. Really bad. "What is an orbital evisceration?" His hands together, his thumbs circled each other and his voice wavered.  
Linda moved to sit on the sofa between him and his younger brother and gathered them up in her arms, rubbing their shaking bodies to calm them. "It means that if your dad doesn't get a hurry up on starting to get better within the next couple of days they might have to remove his eye in surgery."  
"But then he won't be able to be a cop!" Sean protested. "What's he going to do instead?"  
Erin got up and stretched her arms to the ceiling. "That's a discussion for another day." She pulled her nephews up so she could give them a huge hug. "Right now, how about the three of us go for a walk?" Erin glared at Jamie as they left the room.  
"I'll go with them. Mom can fill me in later." Nicky grabbed her phone and purse and ran out of the room.  
When the quartet were safely out of earshot, Linda prepared to go to see Danny, but Henry stopped her.  
"Let's hear what Jamie has to say first," he advised. "Forewarned is forearmed and all that jazz, and I think he has some ammunition for us. Jamie?"  
"Yes. What was that glare about?" Frank asked, wondering if he would have to intervene in a sibling fight, as well as looking after his daughter-in-law and grandsons, as well as worrying about his older son.  
Jamie blushed. "When I met her on the way back I was rather upset. We talked about what happened in the room with Danny, but I told her I didn't want to tell you guys." He bit his lip as he did his best to relax. Extra tension wasn't going to help anyone here. "I was just going to say that he went to sleep and leave it at that. Erin forcefully disagreed with me."  
"And so she should! Why wouldn't you tell us?" Henry also glared at his youngest grandson. "What happened, Jamison?"  
Embarrassed into obedience, Jamie told them everything that he had seen in the room with Danny. Linda added her expertise when he was talking about the machines. Jamie lost eye contact with everybody when he relayed how Danny was thrashing around and didn't seem to be hearing anything that was being said to him. They all laughed at the appearance of the two mystery children.  
After Linda finally left to be with her husband, the remaining adults looked at each other in trepidation. What were they, as Danny's family, going to do if Sean's prediction came true? They would survive, sure. But what would that survival look like?

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 **A/N2:** Posts will hopefully be 7-10 days apart.


	2. Chapter 2

"Sir?"  
Frank stood from his seat in the far corner and addressed his Deputy Commissioner of Public Information. "Garrett? What is it?"  
Henry looked up from his seat on the sofa where he had his arm around Jamie, and he was whispering comforting words to the younger man. Jamie's hands were fisted on his knees, and his forehead rested heavily on top of the pile. Henry continued rubbing circles on Jamie's back as he lifted a hand in greeting and Garrett nodded back.  
"I heard that Danny collapsed at the church today just as Jamie's award ceremony was finishing. Is there anything I can do? Food? Transport?" In his mind Garrett started composing a press release, but he could, and would, only go so far without talking to his boss. There had been reporters outside the church, ready to take photos of Jamie and Wanda Shortland, the woman he had rescued from the burning Shiny Penguin Pub after the bomb blast there. So news coverage was inevitable; it was his job to skew it favorably and mitigate the damage to his boss.  
Frank crossed the room as he was thinking. "No, we're good, thanks. But we need to get a statement out to the media ASAP."  
"Already on it. As soon as Baker gets here and you tell us what's going on, I'll draft it for your approval."  
Shaking his head, Frank said, "There's no time. You've been working with me long enough for you to figure out what to say in this situation without me looking over your shoulder. Just this once you have my permission to release the statement, sight unseen."  
"Okay." In any other situation, Garrett would have felt proud of this sign of Frank's trust. But not when Danny's life was on the line. Since he didn't know when Frank would be back in the office next he decided to take the initiative and distract Frank with talk about other recent events at work and what media coverage they warranted, if any. His trick worked and their conversation was interrupted a few minutes later when they were joined by Frank's personal aide Detective Abigail Baker. She included Henry and Jamie in her hellos. Finally Jamie was pulled out of his seeming catatonic state. He lifted his head to greet Baker and Garrett, who returned the sentiment.  
Frank, Garrett, and Baker pulled their chairs into a tight circle near the door. No matter how hard they tried, Henry and Jamie, now feeling more concerned than guilty, could not hear the conversation. After a couple of minutes they decided to relax, conserve their energy, and grill Frank later.  
Unaware of the coming interrogation, Frank had let his breath out now he knew there were no other disasters he had to deal with right now. He told Garrett and Abigail all that had happened, including the doctor's grim prognosis.  
"I'll issue a press release stating that Detective Reagan has been admitted to hospital with a serious, but not life threatening infection." Garrett knew instinctively what Frank would and would not want referenced. But habit dictated that he get the approval of his boss, and this time Garrett decided that silence was consent.  
"And I'll contact Danny's sergeant. I'll tell him that Detective Reagan will be having a further two weeks medical leave." Baker made a note on the pad attached to her clipboard. "I'll also clear as much of your schedule as I can for the next couple of days."  
"No!" The order was sharp and quick. Baker didn't even flinch, just stood waiting for her boss to continue. She'd hear his reasoning first, then argue if necessary. "As long as I'm not too far from the hospital, I need to continue as usual as much as possible. Too much deviation will cause questions that our family aren't in any state to answer now, and won't be any time soon. Email me a copy of my schedule for the next two days. I'll make the necessary revisions and return it to you." He looked over at his youngest son, who was now sleeping restlessly, his cheek nestled against his grandfather's chest. Only Henry's arm saved Jamie's jerky movements from sending them both to the floor in a tangle of arms and legs. "I'll speak to Jamie and see if he wants to take any time off now or wait until the situation is clearer."  
Acquiescing to her boss's logic, Baker shuffled a paper to the top of her pile. "I have a copy of your schedule here." She passed her clipboard to Frank. "I'll come back and get it before I leave the hospital."  
"There's no need for you to stay around," Frank argued. "I'm sure you have your own things to attend to. Just email me."  
Baker stood up. "I'm here for the next few hours anyway, so it's no bother."  
That comment was spoken loud enough for Henry to hear. "I hope it's nothing serious." He frowned.  
"No, just visiting some of the patients." Baker laughed, then left the room.  
Garrett spent a few minutes chatting with both Frank and Henry, then departed for his office. He wanted to prepare the press statement before the journalists that were already congregating at the hospital entrance found out anything they shouldn't, or started surmising and creating news that brought in money instead of setting down facts.  
"Where's Mommy?"  
Frank turned from putting the last chair back in its place when he heard his youngest grandson's question. He pulled Sean close and kissed his hair. "She's still in with Daddy and the doctors. Did you guys have a good walk with Aunt Erin?" He smiled gratefully at his only daughter, who was hanging back in the doorway with two cups of steaming hot beverage in each hand, frowning at Jamie's restlessness.  
"Yeah. Mommy's taking a long time." Jack worried his top lip with his teeth.  
Before Frank could answer, Jamie's phone rang and jerked him awake. He tumbled to the floor, landing on his back like a dead spider. The phone's ring tone battled with the laughter of his nephews for his attention. His nephews won. He let the call go to voice mail as he sat up and beckoned to the duo. They approached slowly, one from the left and one from the right. Just as they got within arm's reach, he lurched forward. The boys danced backward and giggled when Jamie's legs didn't uncross, causing him to fall face down on the tiled floor, missing them by inches. Jamie rolled over and looked up at them.  
"Uncle Jamie! You're going cross-eyed!"  
Henry saw Linda stop in the hall and wipe her eyes. Since Jack and Sean were being distracted, he motioned to Frank and Erin and the three of them quietly left the room.  
"Linda?"  
Linda turned and was immediately engulfed in a three-way hug by Frank and Henry. "He's not asleep. He's unconscious. His heart rate, blood pressure, everything, it's all all over the place." She stepped back and rubbed her arms, wishing she hadn't forgotten to pick up her cardigan before they had all left the church.  
"Is he responding at all?" Erin handed out three of the cups, keeping the last for herself. Jamie could get caffeine after he'd got some decent sleep.  
Linda tried to smile at her sister-in-law, but it came off as more of a sickly grimace. She didn't think it was a good idea to add anything to her stomach contents but at least the cup would warm her hands a little bit. "He's responding to pain and loud voices. But nothing he says is in any way coherent or sensible."  
Situation normal, then. The words were on the edge of Erin's lips but she managed to stop herself uttering them. "Would you like me to take the boys home with me and Nicky?"  
Linda looked past Erin. "Is that okay with you, Nicky? It's not going to interfere with your plans for this evening is it?"  
Nicky looked up from her phone but her thumbs kept pressing the keys as she sent off another text. "That's fine, Aunt Linda. It's nearly 10 o'clock, so even if I did still have plans I highly doubt Mom would let me go anywhere this late at night."  
Erin turned around and glared at her daughter. "Damn right I wouldn't!"  
Linda grabbed Frank's wrist and looked at his watch. "Phillip's flying fish! I have to get the boys something to eat. They didn't eat much earlier. They must be starving by now."  
"We tried but they didn't really eat anything. Maybe if we took them home and settled them down we might be able to get them to have something. Then we could bring them back in the morning," Nicky suggested.  
The adults agreed and things were done quickly. They returned to the waiting room. Linda gave everyone a status report and told the boys they would be spending the night at Aunt Erin's. After a protest which was quickly truncated by their grandfather, Jack and Sean gathered their belongings and left with Erin & Nicky. Henry and Frank were discussing who was going to stay with Linda and who was going to go home with Jamie when Jamie's phone rang again. Deciding that it wasn't worth arguing about and that he would go with whoever wanted to take him, Jamie stepped out into the hall as he pulled his phone out. "Hello, Jamie Reagan speaking."  
"You really shouldn't answer the phone using your full name. You never know who's going to be on the other end." Jamie's lips twitched upward at Wanda's voice, despite the censure.  
"I guess I'm lucky that you're not a serial killer then."  
Wanda laughed. "You know this after only our second meeting? Wow, you figure people out fast!"  
Jamie relished the teasing. Combined with distracting his nephews, it helped to settle him even further. He was no longer consumed with guilt. He wasn't so focused on the things he'd seen and heard when he was at Danny's bedside. Every negative feeling was being slowly replaced a determination to find some way to help his brother and his nephews. "Thanks for coming today, Wanda. It was great to see you without dirt all over your face."  
"And it was nice to be able to put a name to your face," Wanda said. "You disappeared so quickly after rescuing me that I wasn't even able to thank you, let alone ask you your name. But enough about us. How's your brother?"  
Jamie hesitated. He really didn't know Wanda that well. More pertinent to this situation, he didn't know her job at all. If she was a journalist or some such thing, and he said something he shouldn't, it could be disastrous for his family. "He'll be in hospital for a while, but it's not life threatening or anything like that." He hoped that that was a generic enough statement that none of his family would object to it. He also hoped that Wanda wouldn't dig for more information. He wanted to check with his Dad before saying anything further, so trying to skirt her questions would result in a very awkward conversation, something Jamie wasn't good at.  
A long exhalation filled Jamie's ear. "That's great news! Actually, I was hoping that I could visit tomorrow. The woman that was with your brother left her cardigan behind in the confusion. I picked it up for her."  
"My brother's wife will be very grateful."  
"Good. Since I'm coming up anyway, is there anything else I can bring while I'm up there? Food? Or things for the children to do?"  
A germ of an idea was born in Jamie's mind. "What are you like at home improvement stuff?"  
"I think the hospital has their own people for that." Wanda observed dryly.  
"Ha ha, funny girl." Jamie leaned back on the wall, totally relaxed, and suddenly very hungry. "I'm talking about an actual home."  
"In that case I love doing 'home improvement stuff'!" Jamie could hear the air quotes in Wanda's tone. "What do you need?"  
Jamie grinned. "A few hours of your time tomorrow morning should do it."  
"Tomorrow's Monday," Wanda murmured to herself. Then she was silent for a few seconds. Just as Jamie was getting concerned that they'd gotten cut off, she spoke again. "As long as I'm away by 11, it should be fine. Do I need to bring anything?"  
"No, everything's there," Jamie assured her. "I'll text you the address, and see you at about 8 o'clock, if that's not too early?"  
"Not at all. Looking forward to it."  
So am I, Jamie thought as he texted her Danny's address. Then he rejoined his family and hoped that his father's house was well-stocked with prepared foods because he really couldn't be bothered cooking.


	3. Chapter 3

Jamie sank down to sit on the bottom step outside his brother's house. Blind. Danny was blind. Totally and uncurably blind. Okay, so when you sifted through all the numbers and statistics that that . . . Jamie's thought stopped as he struggled for a word that he could use that he would be comfortable even thinking, but he couldn't find a single one so he finally settled on a phrase instead and his thought continued . . . That Male With a Medical Degree threw around, there was a slim chance that Danny might recover some usable vision. But Jamie knew it would take a miracle. And given the fact that it was a miracle that Danny hadn't been severely injured in the bomb blast at the Shiny Penguin Bar, Jamie was pretty sure that God wouldn't grant them another one. Certainly not through That Male With a Medical Degree. He was no saint. Jamie blew an incredulous raspberry as he thought about what had transpired in the hours after Danny had woken up.  
"That's a nice way to greet a girl!"  
"Ow!" Startled out of his thoughts, Jamie had moved quickly to stand up. Too quickly perhaps, judging by the large piece of wood sticking out of his palm and the trail of blood trickling down his arm. Blood dropped to the ground as he moved to greet his visitor by the front fence,  
"Splinter?"  
Jamie pulled it out and grimaced, swiping his arm backward and forward against his side to stem the flow, staining his yellow shirt orange. "I'll live. Nice to see you again, Wanda. Thanks for coming. Sorry we to delay it a couple of days. I told my Sarge I wanted to work until Danny woke up just in case I had to take an extended leave later on. He decided to take me at my word. Extensively."  
"No worries. Wednesday is always a free day for me. Is there any progress on the Danny front?"  
The good news is that he woke up last night."  
Wanda grinned. "That's great!"  
"Yeah, it is." Jamie rubbed the back of his neck with his uninjured palm. "I hope I'm not keeping you from anything important."  
She laughed. Jamie liked it. It sounded like the dawn chorus of the birds, never the same from note to note. "No, Wednesday is always a free day for me."  
"Oh, yeah. You just said that, didn't you?"  
"So, where are we starting?" Wanda surveyed the property as she emptied the mailbox and handed the envelopes to Jamie. Jamie put them in his pocket to give them to Linda later. "Painting? Cleaning the gutters? Weeding the gardens? Mowing the lawns?"  
Jamie looked around as they walked toward the house, wondering what he'd missed. "It doesn't look that bad. Does it?"  
Wanda's dark hair was highlighted by the sun behind her as she wrinkled her forehead. "It depends. Are you living here, or renting it out?"  
"Neither." Jamie stood still with his hands on his hips and his feet slightly more than shoulder width apart. "It's Danny's house."  
"And you want to tidy it up a bit before he comes home. That's nice of you." Wanda nodded. "I approve."  
"It's going to take more than a face lift before Danny can get home again."  
"Is that the bad news?" Wanda gently stroked Jamie's arm with her thumb as he hesitated.  
"He's blind. Maybe permanently so."  
"No wonder you were blowing raspberries at the world when I arrived. Good on you, Jamie Reagan! No matter how bad things are, just go "Eff you!" to the world and find some way of carrying on."  
"Oh, I wasn't going "Eff you" to the world," Jamie admitted when he felt the blush receding from his cheeks and his jaw loosening after his embarrassment faded. "Just to one particular doctor." He suddenly realised that Wanda was still standing, so he lead her the last few paces to the steps. As they sat down he apologised profusely.  
"What for? I'm quite capable of asking for a seat if I need one." Wanda straightened her prosthesis out in front of her. "The doctor?" she prompted.  
"Is an a-hole. Danny was off the machines but still unconscious when the doctor ordered him removed from the Intensive Care Unit. Then he hadn't been awake for more than a couple of hours before he was taken away for more tests." Jamie shuddered. "Then when he got the results, the doctor told Danny he was lucky because he didn't have to have either of his eyes removed so at least he would 'look normal'."  
Wanda snorted. "You've not had much to do with the medical fraternity, have you?"  
Jamie shook his head.  
"Unfortunately, that sounds about normal for most doctors, I've found. So what else did the doctor do?"  
How did she do that? How did she know there was more to the story? Jamie decided that that was a question for a later time and place. "When Danny was brought into the hospital he was unconscious and getting worse. He was stabilised in the Emergency Room, then moved to the ICU. He became agitated so I went to talk to him. He doesn't like the thought of dying, so I chose to tell him he was in the Emergency Room, hoping that he would calm down if he didn't think his condition was too serious. And he did." He breathed deeply. "But then the doctor decided to talk to him after he woke up and before any of us were there with him. The doctor got Danny angry at me for lying to him."  
"Uh uh. Danny got Danny mad at you. The doctor was just doing his job and now he's a convenient scapegoat. But I agree that you need to clear the air with your brother. Tell him what you were thinking. If you don't think he'll listen to you, write him a letter or an email or something. Anything to let him know you had his best interests at heart. Anyway, let's stop procrastinating and start working." Wanda pushed herself up and wiped her hands on her jeans. "I think it's awesome that you want to tidy the place up before your brother comes home. It's a pity that he won't be able to see the changes, but I'm sure he'll appreciate it being less dangerous. So, where's all the equipment?" She started walking toward Jamie's car.  
Jamie grabbed her arm. "That's not what I brought you here for."  
She turned to face him, confusion showing in her expression. "So why did you bring me here?"  
"Come with me." He led her to the base of the steps. Then he stopped and put his arm around her waist, pulling her close. "Careful."  
Wanda pushed his arm away and stepped back. "I don't need any help. I'm quite capable of climbing a few stairs on my own!"  
Jamie raised his hands in a surrender gesture. "Sorry."  
Wanda didn't answer, but climbed the stairs ahead of him. Jamie watched, fascinated, as her false leg didn't seem to impede her at all. In fact, if he didn't know she was disabled, he wouldn't even suspect something was not normal about her. At the top, he reached past her and unlocked the door.  
Once inside, Wanda and Jamie walked around.  
"Now, I'm really confused." Wanda ran her finger along the top of a couch in the living room. No dust came off, not even a speck. "This place is immaculate, so I'm obviously not here to help you clean. So why am I here?"  
"I need you to tell me what needs to be done so that Danny can come home again."  
"Shouldn't you be asking the doctors that?"  
Jamie walked past her and started to rifle through a pile of junk mail that was on top of the coffee table. Real estate flyers, a leaflet from an office furniture supplier, and a remortgaging information packet from a bank.  
"I don't need to know about the medical stuff. You're right, the doctors will take care of that. Just take a look around and tell me how to make Danny's life easier. Is there something, a piece or furniture or a wall for instance, I should move? Or add? Or take away completely?"  
"Huh? What?"  
Jamie repeated his questions.  
"How should I know? I'm not, I don't have any qualifications in Occupational Therapy or Carpentry or House Modification or anything like that. So why me?" Wanda covered the pain that was starting to niggle in her stump by turning to look at the photos on the wall behind her`1. The force of her movement moved the couch slightly, exposing a thin line of faded burgundy carpet.  
Jamie waved his hand in the direction of Wanda's feet.  
"My prosthesis? What's that got to do with Danny's blindness?" When Jamie didn't answer, her fists clenched at her sides and she answered her own question. "Let me guess. Once you're a cripple, you're automatically an expert on every other cripple in the world."  
"I never called you a cripple," Jamie protested. He wondered where to put the odd sock he'd just retrieved from under the armchair.  
"Well, you should have."  
"But . . . um . . . uh . . . I thought that was an offensive term?"  
"Not to me. I find it quite empowering, actually." There was that laugh again, and Jamie couldn't help but be embarrassed that Wanda saw the confusion in his expression and interpreted it so easily. "You're right into cars, right?" Jamie nodded vigorously. "Okay, then. Think of it like this: A car engine that is "disabled" is one that's in pieces and useless. It has no choice but to lay around and do nothing. But if it's only "crippled" it can still work some, so it has a chance to do its job and be useful."  
"Wow!" Jamie shook his head. "I never thought about it that way."  
Wanda shrugged. "Most people don't. So don't go calling every stranger that you see with a mobility aid a 'cripple' straight off the bat. Talk to them first."  
Jamie laughed. "Point taken and thanks for your words of wisdom and good advice. I'm sorry for insulting you. Do you think we could go back outside and start over?" He'd smelled a sock and decided it was clean so he threw it on the armchair.  
Wanda pulled out her phone and looked at it, noting the time. "Apology accepted and there's no need to start over. Let's just go from here. Where's the lawn mower?"  
Jamie froze. "Like I said, that's not why I asked you to come."  
Wanda exhaled impatiently. "I know. But since I can't do what you wanted me to do, I'll just have to do something else or else both our mornings are wasted."  
Jamie looked around. "We could vacuum, dust, that sort of thing, I guess."  
"Seriously? You asked me for my help and when I offer what I can you throw it back in my face? You really think that vacuuming and dusting an already immaculate house is going to help your brother more than keeping the lawns short, the gutters empty, and the paths weed free?" Wanda ranted.  
"It's not about helping Danny, it's about keeping you safe," Jamie said soothingly. "We can't have you falling off a ladder and breaking your leg, can we?"  
"And how is that your decision? Who are you to tell me what I can and can't do, and what is and isn't safe for me? The accident took my leg. Not my memories. Not my skills. Not my qualifications." Wanda stomped past Jamie. As she left the house, she kept yelling through the open door. "I've had my leg amputated, not my brain! I'm still quite capable of making my own decisions, thank you very much! And if I want to climb a ladder and risk falling off and breaking my leg, I will!"  
Jamie was left standing in the empty room, wondering how his morning had gone so wrong. He'd thought he'd be getting tips to help Danny stay living safely in his own home, and have some fun at the same time.  
Instead he'd made another enemy, his third in as many days.


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N:** I apologise for this post being late. I am redecorating my room - painting a wall and a desk, building a bookshelf, and putting mosaics on my writing desk. That, and more trips to the doctor, leave me with precious time to write right now. Hopefully it will settle down in a couple of weeks.

Thanks everyone for your reviews.

jlmayer: Yes, Wanda does still have to work on accepting how people react. I'm basing her reaction om mine when I started losing my disability and people started focusing on what I couldn't do rather than what I could.

Daisyangel: Thanks for your offer. I'll be in touch when I have time to get back to writing.

* * *

Two days later, Danny Reagan was singing.  
"Why am I waiting? Why am I waiting?" His fist beat a matching rhythm against the bedspread.  
He heard shuffling footsteps approaching. "Mr Reagan."  
"Hello, Dr Ungeretti. So, when am I going home?"  
"I've had a look at your notes. According to the nurses, you're sleeping well and taking less pain relief than you were when you woke up. You've also been more than 24 hours free of fever. So I'm discharging you medically. Since the nurses have been getting you up periodically and they say that you're handling that well, you don't need to see a Physical Therapist. In fact, you can go home as soon as you've seen an OT, and a counselor. I see that the OT is scheduled for today. But it's unlikely that the other referral will be actioned today." Danny heard a rustle of paper and the faint scratching of a pen. "You won't be discharged before the outcomes of those appointments are known, so you're with us until then. If there are no questions, I will see you tomorrow morning."  
"Yes, I have a question. Actually, I have two. What does an OT do? And why do I have to see a counselor?"  
"An OT is an Occupational Therapist. Their job is to assess you in your normal daily activities to see what modifications and extra tools you need to function now that you are blind."  
"But you said this wasn't permanent!" Danny protested.  
"I said that only time would tell if was permanent. If you remember the statistics I gave you, there is a less than 5% chance that you will regain any useful sight."  
"Yes, I remember those numbers, and even a kindergartener knows they added up to more than 100%! If you can't even get the maths right, why should I believe anything else you say?"  
"I've got to get on with the rest of my rounds now. I have to see patients who will actually appreciate my input." There was a definite icy edge to the doctor's voice. "I'll leave orders with the nurse to arrange those other appointments for you. See you tomorrow morning."  
Danny was just getting comfortable again when he was disturbed by his private bedroom door opening and a bag banging against something.  
"Hello, Mr Reagan." Danny sleepily turned toward the voice. "I am Rufus Jernigan."  
"Hello Rufus Jernigan," Danny greeted warily. "Who are you and what do you want?" He wasn't used to being in hospital, and people here had a habit of disturbing patients at all times of the day and night - and usually for nothing important enough to be disturbed for.  
"I'm an Occupational Therapist. I'm here to assess what you need to get you home."  
"Awesome!" Now wide awake, Danny pushed the bedclothes of his legs. "Let's go."  
"Whoa! Am I about to get flashed?"  
"Huh?" Danny's forehead crinkled.  
Rufus repeated the question.  
Danny started pulling at the material covering his shoulders and sighed as he realised he was wearing a backless hospital gown that was separate right to the floor. "I need a front-tying hospital gown," he declared. After a lengthy silence he demanded, "Hello! Is anybody there?"  
"Yes, I am," Rufus assured him.  
"Can you go get the gown, please?" A hint of impatience could still be heard in Danny's voice.  
"How about you press the button to call the nurse?" Rufus countered. "Ask them to get it for you. While they're gone we can have a talk about what you can expect in the first few days after you get home."  
Sighing, Danny retrieved the call button and pressed it forcefully. "They'll probably take a while," he said. "They hardly ever answer straight away. Did you think of that? What are we going to do in the meantime if we run out of things to talk about?" he groused.  
"We can play Pea-Knuckle. So, have you thought about what practical tools you might need to help you adjust to your new lifestyle?"  
"Oh, but this isn't permanent." Danny touched his eyes, as if them feeling something would make his statement come true immediately.  
"But it won't be resolved tomorrow, will it?"  
Further conversation was interrupted by the prompt arrival of the nurse. "Hi, Mr Reagan," she greeted chirpily. "How can I help you?"  
"I need a front tying gown. We're going for a walk." Then he remembered his manners and introduced his visitor.  
"Hi, Rufus. I'm Danny's nurse, Faith Fittey." The greeting was delivered in a tone that led Danny to infer that the nurse had more than a little bit of a crush on Rufus. With no answer forthcoming, the nurse left and arrived back in short order. "Is this what you're looking for?"  
There was another tense silence before Rufus finally directed the question specifically to Danny. Danny took a deep breath. There must be a trick to this. He held his hand out.  
"Can I have it, please?" Faith did so, then she started detaching Danny from the IV that had been administering his medications.  
Danny held the gown and ran a hand over it. He found the ties and the tag that denoted the back of the garment. Satisfied it was what he had asked for he located one of the arm holes and, after fumbling a bit, he finally got the gown on. "Okay. So what do I do now?"  
"How did you do that?" Rufus asked, astonished that Danny had accomplished in seconds a task that other people Rufus had worked with took weeks to master.  
"I'm a cop," Danny said. "I got used to getting dressed in the dark because of night shifts and not wanting to disturb the wife and kids."  
"Wow. So, are you ready to get up?" Rufus asked.  
"Is there anything else?" Faith interrupted, but once again Danny had the feeling that it wasn't him that was being talked to. "No? In that case, I'll get back to my duties. Danny, a nurse will be in later to take the cannula out of your arm."  
"Thanks."  
"You're welcome."  
"Okay, Danny. I see that the nurses have had you up, so I'm sure you know the process of getting up. But I'm also sure you know all about bureaucracy." Danny snorted. "So you'll understand when I ask you to talk me through it as you do it so I can tick it off my list that you know you know what you're doing, and this isn't just a one-off success."  
"Absolutely, I understand completely," Danny sympathised. "First, I'm going to get out on the left side because the call button and bed control are on the right, and I don't want to shift them and not know where they are when I get back."  
"Smart choice," Rufus approved.  
Talking all the time, Danny cleared his path of all obstacles, calculated the distance between himself and the edge of the bed, braced himself, and slowly rotated his body until his legs were dangling over the side of the bed. Inching forward until his feet were on the ground, he stood up and shuffled over to the armchair in the far corner of the room.  
"Do you always walk like you're skiing?" Rufus had followed behind Danny so his curious question came from a place very close to Danny's face.  
"I do for now." Danny lifted the front of his robe to wipe the sweat from his forehead and hairline.  
"Dude! I so do not need that visual!" Rufus grinned.  
"Oops, sorry." Danny also grinned as he dropped the robe and adjusted it. "That better?"  
"Much." Rufus breathed a sigh of relief. His footsteps receded and papers rustled. "It doesn't say anything in your notes about any nerve or muscle damage in your legs. So why do you think that is the way you have to walk for now?"  
"It's the only way I can think of to make sure the floor in front of me is clear of obstacles."  
"Okay. I can help you with that, because what you're doing know is not going to be healthy for you longterm."  
"THIS IS NOT PERMANENT!" Danny thumped the arm of the chair and threw his head back. The armchair rocked back and connected with the wall. "WHY WON"T ANYONE BELIEVE ME?"  
"It's not that I don't believe you," Rufus asserted. "I just want to help you with the situation you are in now. Right now, you are having problems with making sure your way is clear when you move around. I can help you with that while your eyes heal." He walked away, opened a zipper, closed it again, then came back. He pressed something long and skinny into Danny's right hand between the thumb and index finger.  
Danny immediately knew what it was and he let it drop to the floor. "I don't need a cane."  
"Why don't you just give it a go?" Rufus tried to put it back in Danny's hand, but Danny clasped his hands together and linked them behind his head. So Rufus folded the cane up and laid it on his lap instead.  
Danny picked it up and threw it toward the door. "I don't need a cane. I don't need your help. And I don't need this hospital!" He stood up and shuffled back to the bed.  
"You're lucky that nobody was hit by that," Rufus observed as he walked to the door. "I'll leave you alone for now and come back and see you in the morning."  
"Is everything alright in here?"  
Rufus looked up from the floor, where he was kneeling as he repacked his bag. "Hi, Faith. Everything's fine."  
"No it's not," Danny interrupted. "I want my discharge papers, now!"  
"Um, okay, I'll check with the doctor," Faith promised him.  
"You're not listening to me." Danny laid on his back. "I don't care what the doctor says. I'm leaving. Call it AMA, DAMA, LAMA. I don't care. Just get my paperwork and my family. Now." He closed his eyelids, a symbolic ignoring of the others in the room.  
When she got back to the nurse's station, Faith accessed Danny's records and picked up the phone. Running her finger down the page she located the number for Danny's next of kin and dialed it.  
"Hello, may I speak to Linda Reagan, please."  
"Speaking."  
"Hi, this is Faith Fittey. I've been your husband's nurse today."  
Linda's heart constricted. "What happened? Is he okay?"  
"I'm not sure what happened but it seems he got into a fight and now he's insisting that he wants to discharge himself."  
Linda wasn't surprised at the news. Danny had been far too calm since he'd been given the news. It was about time for him to explode. "And I'm guessing that discharge would be Against Medical Advice?"  
"If you could get here as soon as possible that would be appreciated."  
Putting down the phone, Faith grabbed the braille copies of the Discharged Against Medical Advice form and ran back to Danny's room. The man was in a contemptible mood, and she didn't want to be the one to escalate it further.  
"Who's there?" Danny sat up and opened his eyelids.  
"Faith. I've brought the forms for you to sign." She put the clipboard under his hands and guided his hands to the beginning of the document. "Just let me know when you're ready to sign."  
Danny felt unfamiliar bumps under his fingers. "Is this braille? It is, isn't it? I've only been blind a few days! When would I have had time to learn braille?"  
"My brother's never been blind and he can read braille fluently." Faith pulled the clipboard out under from Danny's fingers. "I'll have to find Marcie and get her to bring the computer in so you can listen to the text version. Your wife will be here soon."  
'Soon' turned out to be more than half an hour. During that time, Danny had listened to the appropriate documentation. He grinned when he, with the help of a plastic frame, was able to sign his name in the right places. Finally, his life was getting back to normal.  
Marcie also took out the cannula and put down the bed rail so Danny could start gathering his possessions.  
"Daniel Claude Reagan. What exactly do you think you are doing?"  
Danny had been intent on keeping his balance while he was feeling around in the back of the bottom drawer that he hadn't been paying attention to anything else, and so he didn't hear anybody coming in. He cursed as he lost his balance and once again had to stop himself from falling.  
"Who are you, and what business is it of yours?" he snapped, once he had got his breath back. As the person came nearer, he blushed as he recognised the fragrance perplexed as to why he hadn't even recognised his own wife's voice. "I'm getting out of here, babe. The doctor said I was medically discharged, so everything else can wait. I'm going home." There was no response, so he put his hand out and was able to grasp Linda's arm just above the elbow. "I'm coming home. Babe. This is good news." There was still no response. He slid along the bed until his body touched hers. He gave her a lingering kiss. When she started to melt into him, he begged, "I just need my life to start getting back to normal."  
"If you've been discharged why did you have to sign the DAMA paperwork?" Linda voice wavered on the border of holding firm and giving in.  
"Because the OT was an idiot and I kicked him out before the appointment was finished, and the doctor had some crackpot idea that I need to see a counselor before I was discharged."  
Danny made sure they didn't lose contact as Linda started to lean back. "Seeing a counselor might be a good idea."  
"But I don't need to be in hospital to do that." Linda's voice had strengthened again with her last statement, so Danny delivered his coup de grace. "Besides, we can't afford for me to be in hospital unnecessarily. I wasn't on duty when this happened, remember? Please, Linda. Let me come home."  
"Okay," Linda agreed. "You get the whole weekend to be home. But first thing Monday morning we find you a counselor, and what they say, you do."  
Danny nodded vigorously. At that moment he would have agreed to jump off the moon without a parachute if it would have gotten him home.


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N:** Health, real ife, and general crap keep conspiring to make me break any promises I make, I am never making any promises, ever again - except this one: I will never abandon this story. Ever.

* * *

No cane - Danny feels uncomfortable because he has to have more physical contact than they have ever had  
Can't navigate around the house alone - Jamie is scared that Danny won't be able to get out in an emergency

Normal. Nothing about this is normal. Linda watched Danny hit his shins on a piece of furniture, for probably the thousandth time in the two days since he'd come home from the hospital. I can't wait for tomorrow and the therapist appointment. She relaxed when the front door banged open. "Anybody home?"  
Danny sank into the chair that was the cause of his latest bruise. "In here, bro." He listened for the footsteps. There were two lots, then a thump.  
"I've got the potatoes and the meat." That was Jamie. "Dad, Pop and Nicky will be here in a couple of hours."  
"That'll give us enough time get everything started." That was Erin's voice. Coupled with the sound of a drawer sliding, more thumps and bangs and a screech of a chair leg on the floor, Danny could feel that he was about to burst with confusion and fear. "Stop. Stop!" When there was quiet, he continued. "First, hi, Jamie, hi, Erin. Welcome to our home."  
"Sorry, Danny," Erin said contritely, not missing the sarcasm and hurt in her brother's voice.  
"Hi," Jamie echoed. "Where are the boys?"  
"I'm not finished," Danny said sharply. "Secondly, where are you, and what are you doing here?" When nobody answered he asked again. "Where are you and what are you doing here?"  
"We're having the family dinner here tonight," Linda said calmly.  
"We're what?" Danny asked. "Why? "Why would you do that?"  
"Because you needed it," Linda explained.  
"I needed it?" Danny repeated. "How do you figure that? Huh? How? Considering we never even discussed the issue? In fact, I clearly remember telling you before we even left the hospital that I was looking forward to getting my life back to normal. How is this normal?" He swept one hand in an arc, hitting the arm of the chair he was sitting in. Then he snapped his finger and his tone turned to one of surprise and betrayal. "You didn't want me to come home. You want me to stay away until I'm fully healed. You did all this to me, didn't you, Linda? It started with you not helping me with my seatbelt. You didn't ring the boys to tell them I was coming home so they could get the house prepared. You let Jack cook soup on my first night home; boiling hot tomato soup, not even cold gazpacho. You didn't even tell anybody I was home. Jamie had to find out when I rang him yesterday, with Sean's help, I might add, not yours. You'd think that with you being a nurse you'd be able to cope, but obviously you can't!"  
Linda addressed the second question only, leaving the others and the accusations for another day when they were both calmer. "How did I come to the conclusion that dinner needed to be here? Besides that nonsensical rant? And you tripping and falling and hurting yourself every three seconds over the last two days? And the fact that you didn't go to Mass this morning because you can't handle crowds and tight spaces," Linda defended herself.  
"I didn't go to Mass this morning because I am sick and tired of phone calls and visitors asking me how I am and what I am going to do with my life now and how I was getting on with things. I even had someone ask me if had 'been' with my wife since the accident! It had nothing to do with the number of people that were going to be there, just the behaviour of said people!"  
"Oh. I just"  
"Yes you did!" Danny interrupted his wife. "You just took away all my decision making abilities." He turned to where he had heard his brother last. "And you! You knew I wanted to be there. I told you last night when we were talking."  
"I have no idea what you're talking about," Erin stated.  
"I wasn't talking to you," Danny interrupted her.  
"Then you shouldn't be facing me," Erin shot back.  
"Then you should have both moved so that I could hear you," Danny said.  
"And you should have stipulated who you were talking to," Erin said.  
"Okay. Okay," Jamie said as his footsteps and his voice came toward Danny. "I'm here, Danny." He patted Danny on the arm. "You did say that last night. But when you weren't at Mass this morning and Linda said that dinner would be here tonight, I thought you'd changed your mind because it would be safer and quieter for you."  
Danny pushed the unwanted hand away. "Safer." He tipped his head to the ceiling. "So now I'm useless, helpless, hopeless, and a danger to everyone?"  
"No, of course not," Linda soothed.  
"I wasn't talking to you. Jamie?"  
"No. Of course not." He took a step away from his brother.  
"Then why didn't you say something?" Danny asked. "Why did you just take her word for it that I was curled up in a corner in a blubbering mess waiting for everyone to arrive and snap me out my misery?"  
"Hey!" Erin yelled. "There is no need for that!"  
"No need for what, Erin?" Danny turned to her voice, stressing her name.  
"I don't like the way that you're talking right now."  
"And I don't like the way that you just waltzed into my house as if you own it. I don't like the way you just took someone else's words about how I feel and what I want. And finally I don't like the way you think you can just do what you want when you want."  
"And I don't like your attitude." Again an arm was on his, but this one was a lot tighter and angrier. "We're all just trying to help here," Erin hissed.  
"And I'm just trying to get my life back." Danny used his police training to slip out of Erin's grasp. "I don't appreciate any of this!"  
"Yeah. I think we got that," Jamie drawled. "Loud and clear."  
Danny twirled toward the voice and swung his open palm. There was a satisfying slapping of flesh on flesh then silence. Silence except for Danny still yelling obscenities at his younger brother.  
After a few seconds Jamie recovered. "What was that In aid of? If you want me to leave all you have to do is say so."  
"I want you to leave!" Danny once again struck out, this time aiming lower with his closed fist.  
"Ow!"  
What on earth was that thud? The voice was wrong. It was younger and had come from someone shorter than Jamie.  
"Who's there?" he asked. There was no answer. "Who's there?" he said again. When there was still no answer he stopped and listened. But the only words he heard were his wife's calm orders.  
"Erin. Get some ice. Jamie. We need the first aid box. Sean, Show him where it is now. Sean, it's going to be fine. Jack's just out cold, that's all. He'll wake up in a second. Thanks, Jamie. Now, for god's sake, get Danny out of here!"  
Danny felt a hand on his back. He tried to shake it off, but it was firm. So he gave up and just let the arms lead him.  
"What happened?" he whispered. "What did I do?"  
"You punched Jack in the nose and knocked him unconscious."  
Danny tried to stop. "I need to"  
"You need to do as you're told." Jamie's voice was firm. "Believe me, you're not wanted out there right now. By anybody."  
"I didn't mean to hit him," Danny protested.  
"No, you meant to hit me again, and that's so much more acceptable," Jamie said derisively. He put Danny's hand on something wooden. "Stairs."  
"Well, you shouldn't have been such a h" Danny stopped as he had to concentrate to get up to the second storey. It seemed he had been walking for an eternity when he was turned around and not so smoothly pushed down. Reflexively, he put his hand out and realised that he was going to land on a bed, not the floor. Not that he would blame Jamie. He didn't blame anyone for not wanting him around right now. "Jamie." There was no answer. "Jamie." There was still no answer, so he laid down on his back on the bed and then rolled over onto his side. He thought about all the things that had happened since he had arrived home from the hospital. He shuddered as he remembered all the accusations he had flung at his wife. He wondered what was happening downstairs and decided to go and find out. Despite what Jamie had said to him, he needed to right the wrong and let his boys know that he didn't blame them for anything that had happened over the last few days. It was just going to take them time to adjust. All of them. He stood up from the bed and shuffled forward until he hit the wall. He followed it, but went the wrong way and ended up at the window. He mentally oriented himself, then followed the wall back past the bed to the door. When he was in the passage he crossed over tho the other side of the hall where he knew the bannister for the stairs was. He started counting the doors as he past them: First there was the bathroom, then the toilet, then the office, then Sean's bedroom. The next room was Jack's bedroom. Danny stopped and considered his options.  
"Jack?" he whispered. "Jack?" he said again, a bit louder. There was no answer Using the wall as a guide, Danny shuffled toward the bed, navigating past the chest of drawers. He'd sit here and wait. Jack had to appear sooner or later.  
"What are you doing here?"  
Danny shivered a bit at his wife's icy cool tone. "I'm waiting for Jack. I need to talk to him."  
"Erin's taken the boys to Frank's house for the night." Linda opened some drawers and slammed them shut.  
Danny was startled by the noise and whipped his head toward it. "She's what? How could you let her do that? What's that supposed to accomplish?"  
Apart for keeping my boys safe from more of your violent outbursts? The zip of the bag almost broke under the force of Linda's pull. "Hopefully, it'll give you time to calm down. I've got to get this stuff to Jamie, then I'll be back. Don't move."  
Danny sat with his hands cupped over his forehead. How had the weekend gone so horribly wrong? Damn that Mason Dunnery! She'd cost him his job and his sight. He'd be damned if she was going to take his family as well.


	6. Chapter 6

Hi All,

Just a quick note to explain my prolonged absence. My sister has been diagnosed with terminal cancer. I have been trying (mostly unsuccessfully, since she is only a couple of year older than I am) to come to terms with this, and this story isn't helping me any. Because of the situations the Reagan family face and the decisions they have to make, every time I try to make progress in the story, I either end up in tears or want to vomit.

Therefore, I have had to make the hard decision to put this story on indefinite hiatus until I am emotionally ready to tackle it again.

Cheers,

Rhino


End file.
